14 things to know about Heidi Cruz

By Compiled by Matt Levin

on March 23, 2016 6:35 PM

14 things to know about Heidi Cruz

Heidi Cruz has had a long and prosperous political and private sector career before choosing to support Ted Cruz's presidential campaign. Few candidates' spouses have accomplished as much as she has in the political world (aside from that guy Hillary Clinton married). Here's what you should know about the woman who wants to be first lady.

She grew up in San Luis Obispo, Calif. Heidi Nelson would accompany her parents on mission trips to Africa while growing up.

1. Her family is Seventh-day Adventist

She grew up in San Luis Obispo, Calif. Heidi Nelson would accompany her parents on mission trips to Africa while growing up.

Photo: Bob Owen, San Antonio Express-News

1. Her family is Seventh-day Adventist She grew up in San Luis...photo-8240126.127000 - |ucfirst

2. She is a vegetarian.

As part of her Seventh-day Adventist beliefs, her family does not eat meat. Ted Cruz likes to boast that he horrified his in-laws by telling them stories of his own Cuban family traditions: Christmas Eve pig roasts.

2. She is a vegetarian. As part of her Seventh-day Adventist...photo-6327428.127000 - |ucfirst

3. As an undergrad she attended Claremont McKenna College, a small liberal arts school in California

There, her professors saw her as a political prodigy. One woman who knew Heidi Cruz as an undergrad told the Los Angeles Times, "I would've thought that she would have wanted to be the politician, rather than be the politician's wife."

8. She reported directly to Condoleezza Rice while in the Bush...photo-9251140.127000 - |ucfirst

9. She was the only woman in the office when hired to work at a Goldman Sachs firm in Houston

Heidi Cruz faced a "very traditional culture" in the work place, where she struggled at first in the male-dominated environment, Buzzfeed reported. However, she earned a promotion there from vice president to managing director.

12. She went on a mission trip with Ted Cruz to Nicaragua...photo-1331089.127000 - |ucfirst

13. She battled depression.

In 2005, police found her by the side of an expressway in Austin. She told authorities she was sober and not taking any medications as police gave her a ride home. An adviser to Ted Cruz told Buzzfeed: "About a decade ago, when Mrs. Cruz returned from D.C. to Texas and faced a significant professional transition, she experienced a brief bout of depression. Like millions of Americans, she came through that struggle with prayer, Christian counseling, and the love and support of her husband and family.”

Heidi Cruz has had a long and prosperous political and private sector career before choosing to support Ted Cruz's presidential campaign. Few candidates' spouses have accomplished as much as she has in the political world (aside from that guy Hillary Clinton married). Here's what you should know about the woman who wants to be first lady.